


warmer with you

by forrestffires



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-26
Updated: 2020-05-26
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:28:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24392080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forrestffires/pseuds/forrestffires
Summary: "Thinking about something?" Eddie knows that rainy days make Buck all the more introspective - he's caught Buck looking at the rain, lost in thought, too many times to count.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 185





	warmer with you

It's a rainy night. Buck usually loves rainy nights, the never-ending patter of rain on the ground, occasional streaks of lightning flashing through the sky, accompanying the rumble of thunder from a storm that hasn't quite reached its peak. It's unexpected summer rain, and the sudden drop in temperature is enough to make his bad leg ache. It hasn't ached in a while, but on nights like this, there's a dull, throbbing sensation that he can't pinpoint. 

Yet as he stands, quietly on the porch, a cup of tea in hand, he feels warm inside. It's nearing four in the morning, not leaving enough time to squeeze in a little more sleep before his morning shift, but not late enough to justify waking anyone else up. He'd awoken to a crash of thunder overhead, bringing back unfortunate memories of his best friend buried deep below ground. Those feelings threatened to surge every now and then, but it did help tremendously, feeling the solid warmth of Eddie's body pressed up against him. They're two fully grown adults sleeping on a bed that's too small, and even without being cuddled up together, he can always feel the comfort emanating from the man beside him. 

He'd lay there, contemplating going back to sleep, before realising that it wasn't going to happen, and he'd might as well get up, get an early start. He's a morning person, has always been - the polar opposite of Eddie. For all the years that he'd had to get up in the mornings, first in the army, then for his son, Eddie despised mornings. All morning duties were since delegated to Buck, who'd wake up, extricate himself from the comfort of the bed, and start making breakfast, getting Chris (another early riser, much unlike his father) ready for school, before being graced by a sleepy Eddie, hair a tousled mess. 

His morning goes about this more often than not - he can't remember the last time he'd stayed at his own apartment for more than a week straight. He's grateful - he's found a home outside of home, people to share his mornings with, people to come home to. It's everything he ever wanted. 

The crash of thunder overhead soon brings soft footsteps, and the door creaking open. He turns, expecting to have to put Christopher back to bed - the kid's almost 11 now, but still loves his Buck every bit - but it's Eddie instead, still just wearing his T-shirt and shorts. He yawns. 

"What are you doing up?" He asks, eyes still half closed. 

"Got woken by the thunder. You want some tea?" 

Eddie nods, as he shuffles closer, shoulders bumping into Buck's. Taking the cup from his hands, Eddie brings it slowly to his mouth, sighing at the pleasant warmth it brings. 

"Thinking about something?" Eddie knows that rainy days make Buck all the more introspective - he's caught Buck looking at the rain, lost in thought, too many times to count. 

"You. Us." Buck never passes up the opportunity to be a sap, but it's also the truth. Eddie glances out at the rain that's pelting down on the flowerbeds that they'd spent a weekend working on together. 

"Yeah. Reminds me of when I first kissed you, huh?" He says, quietly, and Buck is grateful that the rain isn't loud enough to block out Eddie's words. They're almost whispered, and it sounds like a soft exhale of love. He does remember that day, very vividly, in fact. 

They'd been toeing the line between friendship and something more for what felt like ages - Buck always flirting a little, pushing further and further into Eddie's boundaries. He'd make a joke, give casual touches that were, in reality, not that casual. He'd feel electricity run down his spine, a swarm of butterflies in his stomach, but always hoping that his feelings were reciprocated. 

Eddie was always a little more reserved about his feelings, and he still was. But back then, there were times when Buck pushed and Eddie pushed back, both daring each other to cross the unspoken line. Every now and then, Buck would get the sense that _yes,_ Eddie wanted him just as much, and the next moment, he'd be left wondering if he'd just imagined it. He had clamped down on his feelings, determined to wait for Eddie, wait for him to be ready, if he ever got there. That feeling of pining, of wondering whether he was actually flirting back or if he was just being friendly, was one that Buck had gotten all too familiar with. 

Really, he would have been satisfied with that friendship, he'd told himself. Doesn't stop his heart from almost leaping out of his chest when he remembers that night. 

It had been raining - probably why Eddie was thinking about it - and they'd been going home. Eddie's home, more specifically. Buck had already been staying there most nights, making flimsy excuses to himself about it being closer to work and just more convenient, but truth was, it felt like home more than his empty apartment did. 

Buck was driving through the rain, Eddie in the passenger seat, radio turned to a minimum volume. It had been a long shift, and the sun had set long ago. He was talking about something, eyes trained on the road but going on about this Egyptian history exhibit he'd visited a few days ago. 

"Eds, are you listening? Are you okay?" He'd realised that Eddie hadn't spoken a word for a while, silently staring at the road ahead. There's a brief pause, silence filled by the falling rain, before Eddie speaks. 

"I'm in love with you." It sounds almost resigned, as if he's tired of holding it in, and Buck's heart stops. He doesn't know what to say, still trying to formulate some kind of cohesive response in his addled brain (it's always addled when it comes to his _best friend_ ), but Eddie's talking again, and it feels like once he starts, he can't stop. 

"I get if you don't feel the same way, but I need you to know. I don't want to be friends; I want to be more." Eddie's staring at him now, and out of the corner of his eyes, Buck can feel the intensity of his gaze, making him feel vulnerable. He's been quiet for far too long, and Eddie seems to take it as a sign of rejection, because he slumps down in the passenger seat, eyes trained on the floor of the truck. Buck's screaming at his brain to just - say something - because that expression on Eddie's face is devastating. 

"I do. I feel - I feel the same way," he stammers out, brain finally starting up again. Eddie's head jerks up, and the hope in his eyes makes Buck impossibly soft, makes his heart feel like its melting. He breathes in deeply, and says, "I love you, too." 

The weight of the confessions hangs heavily between them for a moment, both basking in the consequences of placing their feelings out in the open for the other to see. It's Buck who breaks the silence first, saying the first thing that comes to mind. 

"You thought I didn't like you back?" He asks, because he'd thought he was the opposite of subtle. Eddie makes a choking noise. 

"Well, you might've just been being nice to me? I don't know, why didn't you say anything?" He says, and they're talking again, like any other day, like something momentous didn't just happen. 

They pull up to Eddie's house, still caught up in banter but it feels a little sweeter, and Buck's slowing down before they reach the doorstep. Eddie turns, and Buck's holding his arm and pulling him into a small, shy peck. He's blushing, he can feel it, and then Eddie is smiling and pulling him into the house - his home. 

"Actually, I'm pretty sure I kissed you first," Buck says, brought back to reality by Eddie resting his head on his shoulder. 

"Maybe," Eddie says, as if he doesn't remember it every bit as vividly as Buck does. 

And Buck is reminded of just how little has changed for the both of them, that falling in love with his best friend might've been the best choice he's ever made.

**Author's Note:**

> it's raining now; its 2am and i have classes tomorrow
> 
> find me @forrestffires on tumblr! :)


End file.
